Communication method and system

ABSTRACT

A telecommunication system comprises a mobile station, or handset, usable by a user, at least one switching center connectable to the mobile station. The system is arranged such that when an attempt to establish a connection between the mobile station and the switching center fails, information relating to the cause of the connection failure is provided to the mobile station. The mobile station is able to provide this information to help a center.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a communication method and system. Inparticular, but not exclusively, the present invention relates to a datacommunication system and method.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Wireless cellular networks are known in which the area covered by thenetwork is divided into cells. Each cell has a base station associatedtherewith, which is arranged to communicate with mobile stations orother suitable devices in the respective cell. The communicationsbetween the mobile stations and the base stations use radio frequencysignals. Typical mobile stations are arranged to provide voice and dataservices.

The GPRS standard allows mobile stations to send and receive data. Usingthis standard, it is possible to send and receive faxes and also to makeconnections with the Internet, usually to download data therefrom. It isalso possible with the GPRS standard to receive and send email messages.With these data services, particularly those where the user is accessingthe Internet, the user may find that it is not possible to establish aconnection. The failure to establish a connection may be due to problemswith the network, the result of a user error when establishingconnection, be a service which is not available, or because therequested service is not available to the particular user. Currently,the user either succeeds in establishing a connection or fails. The userwill not know why a connection has failed. If a user fails to establisha connection, he will usually repeatedly try to establish theconnection. Repeated failure to establish a connection, for example dueto a user error or the like can be particularly frustrating for theuser.

An additional problem is that if the user contacts the network operatorto request assistance, it is not simple for the network operator todetermine the cause of the failure to establish a connection.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore an aim of embodiments of the present invention toaddress the problems discussed previously.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided acommunications system comprising a first node usable by a user, at leastone second node, said first node being connectable with the second node,said system being arranged such that when a connection failure occursbetween said first node and said second node, information relating tothe cause of said connection failure is provided to said first node,said first node comprising means for providing information relating tosaid connection failure to a third node.

According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provideda communication method comprising the steps of determining when aconnection failure occurs between a first node and a second node;providing information relating to the cause of said connection failureto the first node; and providing information relating to the connectionfailure from the first node to a third node.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided anode for use in a communication system comprising said node and at leasttwo further nodes, said node and one of said further nodes beingconnectable, wherein said node is arranged to receive information when aconnection failure occurs between said node and said one of said furthernodes, said node comprises means for providing information relating tothe cause of said connection failure to another one of said furthernodes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the present invention and as to how thesame may be carried into effect, reference will now be made by way ofexample only to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows a cellular network with which embodiments of the presentinvention can be used;

FIG. 2 shows a schematic view of a GPRS system with which embodiments ofthe present invention can be used; and

FIG. 3 shows a flow chart of the steps carried out in embodiments of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

Reference is first made to FIG. 1, which shows part of a wirelesscellular network with which embodiments of the present invention can beused. The area covered by the network 2 is divided into a plurality ofcells 4. Each of the cells has a base station subsystem 6 associatedwith it. The base station subsystem 6 is arranged to send signals to andreceive signals from mobile stations 8 or other user equipment in thecell associated with the base station subsystem 6. The signals sentbetween the mobile station 8 and the base station subsystem 6 allowvoice and data connections to be established. The connection between themobile stations 8 and the base station subsystems 6 is a radioconnection.

Reference will now be made to FIG. 2, which shows part of a GPRS networkwith which embodiments of the present invention can be used. The mobilestation 8 is able to communicate with the base transceiver station 8 viaa radio connection. The base transceiver station is connected to a basestation controller 9 which is in turn connected to a mobile servicesswitching centre MSC 10. The mobile services switching centre 10 isgenerally used for voice connections which the mobile station makes tothird parties. The mobile services switching centre 10 is connected to ahelp centre 12. It should be appreciated that the mobile servicesswitching centre 10 also is used when certain types of data service areused. For example, the mobile services switching centre 10 is used withthe short message service SMS. The short message service allows themobile station to receive from and to send to third parties shortmessages. This is controlled by the mobile services switching centre 10.

The base station controller 9 is also connected to a serving GPRSsupport node SGSN 14 which is used for GPRS services. The SGSN 14 keepstrack of the mobile station's location and performs security functionsand access control. The SGSN 14 is also connected to a help centre 12.This help centre may be the same or different to the help centre 12.

The SGSN 14 is also connected to a gateway GPRS support node GGSN 18.The GGSN 18 acts as a gateway and allows connections to be made todifferent networks or the like. Finally, the SGSN 14 is also connectedto a domain name system DNS 20. The domain name server 20 storesaddresses for site names. Thus the user will enter an access point (AP)name into his mobile station. The domain name server is able to takethis name and provide the address of the site in a form which can beunderstood by various of the network elements.

Reference is now made to FIG. 3, which describes the steps embodying thepresent invention. In step S1 the mobile station requests a connection.This example is a PDP context activation request. Any other type ofconnection request may be provided. This connection may be with anothertelephone, mobile all connected to a fixed network or may be to aninternet location or the like.

In step S2, the base station subsystem receives the connection requestfrom the mobile station. The base transceiver station will forward dataconnection requests to the SGSN and voice connection requests to themobile services switching centre. Short message service connectionrequests can be optionally sent to the mobile services switching centreor to the SGSN. The data connection request will be considered, by wayof example. A voice connection request may be forwarded to the mobileservices switching centre in step S3′. The remaining steps are notdescribed but may be similar to those outlined hereinafter relating tothe data connection.

In step S3, the SGSN receives the connection request. In step S4, theSGSN may carry out an authentication procedure. This is a straightforward procedure in which the SGSN simply checks the identity of themobile station in question. For an attach, the SGSN will need toexchange information with the mobile station and will need to accessinformation from a separate location, such as an authentication centre.It should be appreciated that in some embodiments of the presentinvention, this authentication step may be omitted if the mobile stationhas attached to the network earlier and has previously beenauthenticated. A more complex procedure may be carried out inalternative embodiments.

If the authentication procedure is successful, step S5 is carried out.In step S5, the SGSN checks to see whether or not the subscriber is ableto make the type of connection which he is attempting. For example, theSGSN will check to see whether or not the mobile station supports aconnection to the Internet or the like and/or checks to see whether ornot the mobile station has subscribed to the necessary operator serviceswhich permit the mobile station to use the requested service. It shouldbe appreciated that the subscription may contain many parameters suchas: access point name (APN); packet data protocol (PDP) type; fixed ordynamic address; quality of service profile; access restricted to homepublic land mobile network (PLMN) GGSN etc. Accordingly a PDP contextrequest may be rejected for a number of different reasons in step S5. Ifthis check is successful, and the mobile station is attempting toconnect to the internet, the next step is step S6.

In step S6, the SGSN takes the access point name with which the mobilestation is requesting a connection and obtains from the domain namesystem (DNS) 20 the address of the associated site. The name is receivedby the SGSN from the mobile station. Provided that the mobile stationhas not made an error in the name of the site and that the domain nameservice is working, the SGSN will receive from the domain name system 20the associated address. The address provided by the domain name systemis the GGSN address. A second domain name system may be used after theGGSN to retrieve the Internet address.

In step S7, the SGSN may make a further check to see if the user ispermitted to be connected to the particular GGSN. For example, thesubscriber may be limited to access only the Home GGSN. Alternatively,company employees using a company mobile station may be prevented fromaccessing certain sites, such as entertainment sites or the like. Theremay be alternative reasons why the user is not permitted to be connectedto the GGSN.

In step S8, assuming that the subscriber is permitted to connect withthe GGSN the PDP context activation request is forwarded to the GGSN.The GGSN will further check if a PDP context can be established for themobile station. The user may be authenticated by a password using aradius server. The GGSN may also or alternatively check other parameterssuch as a selection mode parameter. The connection may also fail if theGGSN has a lack of resource. If the PDP context request can be accepted,the GGSN advises the SGSN in step S9. The SGSN advises the mobilestation n in step S10. In that way, the mobile station is able toconnect to the required GGSN.

In the method described in FIG. 3, there may be a number of possiblereasons why a connection is not established. For example, theauthentication of step S4 might fail, the subscriber may not be apermitted subscriber able to make the type of connection requested andstep S5 may not be successful, the name of the site provided by themobile station may be incorrect, for example due to a spelling mistakeor the like so it is not possible to obtain an address from the domainname server 20 or the domain name server is not operating correctly, theservice requested for the subscriber is not a permitted one or the GGSNcheck may fail. In all of those cases (steps S4 to S9), S11 is the nextstep which determines that the connection has failed and why. When aconnection has failed, in step S12, an error message is sent to themobile station. This error message may tell the mobile station that theconnection has failed and include information identifying the reason forfailure. A message is preferably displayed on the display which allowsthe user to determine that the connection has failed. The error messagepreferably also asks the user if he would like assistance. It should beappreciated that the reason for the failure may not be displayed and/ormay not be in a form which is understood by the user. In someembodiments of the invention, the reason for the failure is not sent tothe mobile station.

In step S13, the user is able to indicate using the device interfacethat he would like assistance. The mobile station will then send amessage indicating that it requests assistance. This message will in oneembodiment of the present invention be a short message service SMSmessage which is sent to a prerecorded help centre number. Typically,the message will include the mobile identity. The mobile stationidentification may be the IMSI number, the mobile station ISDN number orany other suitable identification. The error message also includes thereason as to why the connection has failed. The message may also includethe failure event.

The message also preferably includes configuration information relatingto the mobile station. This information may include one or more of thefollowing types of information:

the quality of service requested by the user; the PDP (packet dataprotocol) address used by the mobile station to make the connection; thepacket data protocol type used by the user; and the access point name(APN).

In step S14 the short message service message SMS generated by themobile station is transmitted to the base transceiver station. Thisshort message service data message can be forwarded to the mobileservices switching centre and from there to the help centre associatedtherewith. A connection is established with the help centre. The shortservice message may be sent via the SGSN.

It should be appreciated that in preferred embodiments of the presentinvention, the mobile station is arranged to automatically generate theSMS message if the user indicates that he requires assistance. In analternative embodiment of the present invention, the user may assist inthe generation of the short message service message. In yet anotheralternative embodiment of the present invention, the mobile station isarranged to automatically generate the SMS message once the mobilestation has received an indication of an error. In this latter case, theuser would not be required to indicate via the interface whether or nothe required assistance.

In a further embodiment of the invention, as soon as it is determinedthat there is an error, the mobile station is automatically providedwith assistance without being first advised that there is an error.

In step S15 the help centre is able to determine from the messagereceived from the mobile station the cause of the error. The help centrecan do a number of things. For example, the help centre can generate amessage, for example a short message service message which is sent tothe mobile station explaining to the user the reason for the failure. Ifnecessary, the message can indicate what needs to be changed, either amobile station setting or information input by the user.

In a second alternative, the help centre can send information to alterthe settings of the mobile station in order to permit the error to becorrected. This can be done using a MEXE or SIM tool kit.

In a third possibility, a telephone connection is established with thehelp centre so that an advisor at the help centre is able to advise theuser of the mobile station as to the problem.

In a fourth possibility, the help centre may send a message to the useradvising him as to a code or information relating to the error. The userof the mobile station can then call the help centre and have the errorassociated with the code received by the user explained by the helpcentre.

It should be appreciated that in embodiments of the present invention,one or more of the options outlined above may be used.

Embodiments of the present invention are particularly useful with morecomplex services such as GPRS and the proposed third generation standard(UMTS). The user will generally have to perform more complex steps inorder to configure the connection.

In the case of the GPRS and UMTS system, problems can occur with themobile station configuration, a fault with the base station controller,a fault with the SGSN, a fault with the GGSN, a fault with the internetservice provider or there may be a normal case of operation but wherethe subscriber data has introduced a limitation and so on.

By way of example, a list of possible causes of connection failure inthe case of an unsuccessful GPRS packet data protocol (PDP) contextactivation will now be explained. This is as described in the associatedETSI specification No 04.08.

-   -   1. The access point name APN is missing or incorrect.    -   2. The PDP address or PDP type is unknown.    -   3. The user authentication has failed.    -   4. The activation has been rejected by the GGSN. The GGSN may        carry out its own authentication and this may have been        rejected.    -   5. The activation has been rejected for an unspecified reason.    -   6. The service option requested by the user is not supported.    -   7. The user does not subscribe to the requested service.    -   8. The service requested by the user is temporarily out of order        or unavailable.    -   9. The network service access point identifier (NSAPI) is        already used.    -   10. There is a regular deactivation—for example if the quality        of service of the connection is not acceptable, there will be an        automatic deactivation.    -   11. The available quality of service has not been accepted by        the mobile station and therefore the connection is not made.    -   12. There has been a network failure.    -   13. Reactivation is required. This will require the mobile        station to detach and then reattach to the network.

The following messages relate to the protocol associated with PDPcontext activation:

-   -   14. The transaction identifier value used is invalid.    -   15. The message is semantically incorrect.    -   16. The mandatory information in the message is invalid.    -   17. The message type is nonexistent or not implemented.    -   18. The message type is not compatible with the protocol state.    -   19. The information element is nonexistent or not implemented.    -   20. There is a conditional information element error. In other        words, there is an error in the non-mandatory information.    -   21. The message is not compatible with the protocol state.    -   22. There is a protocol error of an unspecified reason.

The operator may not charge the user for the message, sent automaticallyby the MS. This may be done by informing the billing operator to deducta charge for one message. Alternatively, the operator may automaticallycharge the user. The help centre can be arranged so that the chargesassociated with the message sent to the user are deducted from theuser's bill.

It should be appreciated that whilst embodiments of the presentinvention have been described in the context of a GPRS system,embodiments of the present invention can be used with any other datasystem. Embodiments of the present invention can be used with datapacket systems or non packet data systems. Alternative embodiments ofthe present invention can also be used with voice systems or systemswhich provide voice and data communications.

Embodiments of the present invention have been described in associationwith wireless telecommunication systems. However, embodiments of thepresent invention can also be used in conjunction with wiredtelecommunication systems.

Embodiments of the present invention have been described in the contextof a network which uses mobile stations. The mobile stations may bemobile telephones, portable computers or any other suitable device. Itshould also be appreciated that embodiments of the present invention arealso applicable to any type of user equipment which is moveable or in afixed location.

It should be appreciated that the error messages which have beendescribed above in the context of a PDP context activation or by way ofexample only. Any suitable error message can be provided to the mobilestation.

The method described in relation to FIG. 3 has described error messagesresulting only from errors occurring in an PDP context activation.However, it should be appreciated that embodiments of the presentinvention have much broader application and can be used in any scenario.Embodiments of the present invention can be used wherever there is aproblem in establishing a connection, whether it be a voice or a data orany other type of connection, to advise the user as to the nature of theerror and/or to assist the user in correcting the error.

When an attach procedure fails in GSM/GPRS or UMTS, a short messageservice SMS message can be sent to the Help Center. This is possiblebecause, if the attach to the mobile services switching centre servicesfail, the mobile may be capable of attaching to the SGSN services whichalso support SMS. Alternatively if the attach procedure to the SGSNservice fails the mobile may be capable of attaching to the mobileservice switching centre services which also supports SMS.

Whilst the preferred embodiment of the present invention has beendescribed in the context of a PDP context activation request,embodiments of the present invention can be used in the context of anyother request whether it be a connection request or otherwise.Embodiments of the invention can alternatively or additionally be usedwhenever there is a failure or change to the service.

Embodiments of the present invention can also be used in other errorconditions. For example, embodiments of the present invention can beused wherever there is a problem. For example, if a connection isbroken, the user can be advised as to the reason for this failure. Forexample, this may be because a user has moved from the coverage of oneoperator to the coverage area of another operator and the other operatordoes not support the service being used by the mobile station.

Embodiments of the present invention have used SMS messages as these maybe sent and received even if other types of connection can not be setup. However, alternative embodiments of the invention may use any othersuitable service such as anonymous access, voice or a data connection.

1. An apparatus comprising: a receiver configured to receive informationfrom a communications system when a connection failure occurs betweensaid apparatus and at least one node, said received information relatingto a cause of said connection failure; and a transmitter configured toprovide to a management entity information comprising said receivedinformation relating to the cause of connection failure, saidtransmitted information enabling said management entity to provideassistance to said apparatus to assist a user of said apparatus incorrecting an error relating to the cause of said connection failure. 2.The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said information receivedby the apparatus causes the apparatus to request if the user requiresassistance from the management entity.
 3. The apparatus as claimed inclaim 1, wherein the receiver is further configured to receiveinformation from said management entity to change at least one settingof the apparatus.
 4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein thereceiver is further configured to receive from said management entity amessage advising as to the cause of the failure.
 5. The apparatus asclaimed in claim 1, wherein a connection is established between theapparatus and the management entity so that the user is able tocommunicate with a helper at the management entity.
 6. The apparatus asclaimed in claim 1, wherein said management entity is further configuredto ensure that said user receives charges associated with saidassistance.
 7. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein saidcommunications system comprises a wireless telecommunications system. 8.The apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein said communications systemcomprises a cellular telecommunications system.
 9. The apparatus asclaimed in claim 1, wherein said communications system supports voiceconnections.
 10. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein saidcommunications system supports data connections.
 11. The apparatus asclaimed in claim 10, wherein said communications system comprises ageneral packet radio service system.
 12. The apparatus as claimed inclaim 11, wherein said at least one node comprises a servicing generalpacket radio service support node.
 13. The apparatus as claimed in claim1, wherein said information is provided by a short message service. 14.The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said apparatus furthercomprises user equipment.
 15. The apparatus as claimed in claim 14,wherein said user equipment comprises a mobile station.
 16. Theapparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said communications systemcomprises a wired telecommunications system.
 17. The apparatus asclaimed in claim 1, wherein said connection failure occurs for one ormore of the following reasons: incorrect information input by said userto said apparatus; an unavailable service requested by said user; theuser does not subscribe to a requested service; incorrect settings ofsaid apparatus; and errors at the at least one node or any other node.18. A method comprising: receiving at an apparatus information relatingto a cause of a connection failure for a connection between theapparatus and at least one node; transmitting from said apparatus to amanagement entity said information relating to a cause of the connectionfailure; and receiving assistance at said apparatus from the managemententity to assist a user of said apparatus in correcting an errorrelating to the cause of said connection failure.
 19. A system,comprising: an apparatus usable by a user; and at least one node, saidapparatus being connectable with the at least one node, said systembeing configured such that when a connection failure occurs between saidapparatus and said at least one node, information relating to a cause ofsaid connection failure is provided to a management entity, saidmanagement entity providing assistance to the apparatus to assist theuser of said apparatus in correcting an error relating to the cause ofsaid connection failure.
 20. A method, comprising: determining when aconnection failure occurs in a communications system, between anapparatus usable by a user and at least one node; providing informationrelating to a cause of said connection failure to a management entity;and providing assistance from said management entity to said apparatus,to assist the user of said apparatus in correcting an error relating tothe cause of said connection failure.
 21. An apparatus, comprising:receiving means for receiving information from a communications systemwhen a connection failure occurs between said apparatus and at least onenode, said received information relating to a cause of said connectionfailure; and transmitting means for transmitting to a management entityinformation comprising said received information relating to the causeof connection failure, said transmitted information enabling saidmanagement entity to provide assistance to said apparatus to assist auser of said apparatus in correcting an error relating to the cause ofsaid connection failure.
 22. The method as claimed in claim 18, furthercomprising: when said information is received by the apparatus, theapparatus requesting if the user requires assistance from the managemententity.
 23. The method as claimed in claim 18, further comprising:receiving information from said management entity to change at least onesetting of the apparatus.
 24. The method as claimed in claim 18, furthercomprising: receiving from said management entity a message advising asto the cause of the failure.
 25. The method as claimed in claim 18further comprising: establishing a connection with the management entityso that the user is able to communicate with a helper at the managemententity.
 26. The method as claimed in claim 18, wherein said managemententity is configured to ensure that said user receives chargesassociated with said assistance.
 27. The method as claimed in claim 18,wherein said communications system comprises a wirelesstelecommunications system.
 28. The method as claimed in claim 27,wherein said communications system comprises a cellulartelecommunications system.
 29. The method as claimed in claim 18,wherein said communications system supports voice connections.
 30. Themethod as claimed in claim 18, wherein said communications systemsupports data connections.
 31. The method as claimed in claim 30,wherein said communications system comprises a general packet radioservice system.
 32. The method as claimed in claim 31, wherein said atleast one node comprises a servicing general packet radio servicesupport node.
 33. The method as claimed in claim 18, wherein saidinformation is provided by a short message service.
 34. The method asclaimed in claim 18, wherein said apparatus further comprises userequipment.
 35. The method as claimed in claim 34, wherein said userequipment comprises a mobile station.
 36. The method as claimed in claim18, wherein said communications system comprises a wiredtelecommunications system.
 37. The method as claimed in claim 18,wherein said connection failure occurs for one or more of the followingreasons: incorrect information input by said user to said apparatus; anunavailable service requested by said user; the user does not subscribeto a requested service; incorrect settings of said apparatus; and errorsat the at least one node or any other node.
 38. The method as claimed inclaim 18, wherein said management entity communicates with saidapparatus via said at least one node.